ORTHOCERAS ANCIENT FOSSIL 100 CTS [MGW1019 ]

Item Information

Dimensions (mm)

not provided

Weight (carats)

not provided

Colors

Orthoceras

Orthoceras was a ancient mollusk that lived more than
400 million years ago. The name means straight horn, referring to the
characteristic long, straight, conical shell. The preserved shell is
all that remains of this ancestor of our modern-day squid.

THIS SPECIMEN IS VERY WELL POLISHED .

WEIGHT: 100 CTS APP

SIZE: 67 X 19 X 9 MM APP

The soft body lived in the last open-ended segment at
the large end of the conical shell. As the body grew and the housing
segment became too small, a dividing wall, called the septa,
grew to separate the old “home chamber” from the new one. The
differences in the composition of these shell parts allowed for
differences in fossilization so the parts can be seen.

The siphuncle is a tube that runs the entire
length of the shell, through each of the chambers. This tube had two
functions. Once filled with water, the nautiloid could force the water
out, propelling itself backward with a kind of jet propulsion. By
releasing the water and leaving air space, the tube could serve as a
bouyancy device allowing the animal to rise and lower itself to
different depths.

These straight shelled nautiloids ranged in size from less than a centimeter to more than 14 feet long!

AS WITH ALL OUR STOCK YOU MAY RETURN IT FOR A FULL REFUND IF NOT PLEASED PROVIVED IT IS NOT TOUCHED IN ANY WAY.

Type 1 Gemstones

The following gemstones are typically inclusion free, even minor inclusions detract from their value.